Nobel Peace Prize 2014

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai for their “struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education.” The Committee specifically pointed out how commendable it was for “a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism”. The Committee also hoped that their fight for the rights of children will contribute to the larger goal of “fraternity between nations” that Alfred Nobel has explicitly mentioned in his will as one of the criteria for awarding the Nobel Peace Prize.

Malala and Satyarthi will be awarded a medal and $1.4 mn at an special ceremony in Oslo.

Malala Yousafzai

17 year old Malala Yousafzai is the youngest Nobel Laureate in the history of the prize. She is also the third Nobel laureate who was born in Pakistan.

Malala fought for the rights of girl children in Swat Valley, Pakistan to attend school. She was shot by gunmen there, and later moved to Birmingham, UK. Since then, she has published her autobiography, addressed the UNGA, been named one of Time magazine’s most influential people in 2013, and awarded the EU’s Sakharov Prize for human rights.

Kailash Satyarthi

Satyarthi is the eighth Nobel laureate to have been born in India. He is an adherent of Gandhian philosophy. He has upheld Mahatma Gandhi’s practice of engaging and conducting peaceful protests. He has focused his agitations against the exploitation of children for financial gain. He is the founder of the Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Childhood Movement). Through his NGO, he campaigns for protection of child rights and to abolish illegal human trafficking.